TN: Turkey Flat Vineyards Barossa Valley Shiraz 2002

[KMP]

Turkey Flat Vineyards Barossa Valley Shiraz 2002 $16.99USD, 375ml
Cherry red, pink edge. Quite closed. Hints of chocolate and dusty oak. Mouthfilling with big astringent tannins and a clean acid finish. Well balanced. More open on retronasal with blackberry and plum jam. Nice length to the finish. Became more open over several hours, but disappointing compared to several other wines that have been tasted from this vintage. 2,2,3.0,9.0 = 16.0

Stored for 48 hours under vacuum seal after which it became much more open with chocolate, blackberry and licorice, and a hint of toasted oak. A prolonged finish. Well balanced. A nice wine. 14.5% alcohol. 2,2,4.0,9.7 =17.7 (Tasted July 31-August 2).

Mike

[PaulV]

Hi Mike

I noted in your review you state the alcohol was 15.5%. I would appreciate it if you could just check that - on their website it states the wine has an alcohol level of 14.5%.
http://www.turkeyflat.com.au/a_wines/f_wines.html

If what you say is true, I wonder if the US gets a different blend of the wine.
Cheers

paul

[Gary W]

Hi Mike

I noted in your review you state the alcohol was 15.5%. I would appreciate it if you could just check that - on their website it states the wine has an alcohol level of 14.5%.
http://www.turkeyflat.com.au/a_wines/f_wines.html

If what you say is true, I wonder if the US gets a different blend of the wine.
Cheers

paul

No...the US gets accurate labelling.
Here 14.5% + or - 1.5%. ...so legally it could be 16%.....it is a bloody disgrace.

GW

[KMP]

Hi Mike

I noted in your review you state the alcohol was 15.5%. I would appreciate it if you could just check that - on their website it states the wine has an alcohol level of 14.5%.
http://www.turkeyflat.com.au/a_wines/f_wines.html

If what you say is true, I wonder if the US gets a different blend of the wine.
Cheers

paul

Yes Paul you are correct. It was a typo on my part. Thanks for picking it up. Have corrected it.

Mike

[Guest]

Mike

Do you think the long trek to San Diego affects the wine's showing?

There is little disputing, in my experience, older and unfiltered wines travel poorly.

Wonder about the newer releases.

[KMP]

Mike

Do you think the long trek to San Diego affects the wine's showing?

There is little disputing, in my experience, older and unfiltered wines travel poorly.

Wonder about the newer releases.

This is an interesting question. Its hard to know what these wines go through between Oz and the wine shop I buy from. I've been holding off on giving my review of the 2002 Branson Coach House Shiraz Greenock Block because of the possibility of a problem with handling and storage. The first bottle I opened had leaked (top of the cork was stained) and the wine did not show well having some sourness to the finish. I trust the shop I buy from to store wine well, very well. In fact many of the Aussie wines I buy from them taste better here than in Oz. A classic example being Rosemount Shiraz. I've never had a good bottle in Oz, over here the stuff can be nectar and at $7USD its always a crowd pleaser.

But I digress. TORB pulled up an article in The Advertiser about poor shipping and handling problems and so its a possibility. With the Branson the second bottle that I'll try next week stripping the capsule revealed a clean cork top, so maybe it was just a poor cork on that first bottle. As for the Turkey Flat. I will try another 375ml bottle as I'd like to get a firm impression of the wine before we see the 750ml in the shops; which will be soon if not now. My feeling is that the wine may be closing down a little, at least in the smaller bottle. I think in a few years it will be an excellent wine and has along life ahead of it.

Mike

[BobFoster]

We had the wine here in San Diego last week. (Only the 375ml bottles have arrived no 750s yet) We opened it and did a rough decant five hours before drinking. Very tight and tannic when first opened. Five hours later big rich wine with lots of depth and spice. Great balance and complexity (and avoiding those over the top over-ripe flavors Parker and his sycophants seem to adore) Fruit there but still closed down. Needs time.

[Daryl Douglas]

Turkey Flat Vineyards Barossa Valley Shiraz 2002 $16.99USD, 375ml
Cherry red, pink edge. Quite closed. Hints of chocolate and dusty oak. Mouthfilling with big astringent tannins and a clean acid finish. Well balanced. More open on retronasal with blackberry and plum jam. Nice length to the finish. Became more open over several hours, but disappointing compared to several other wines that have been tasted from this vintage. 2,2,3.0,9.0 = 16.0

Stored for 48 hours under vacuum seal after which it became much more open with chocolate, blackberry and licorice, and a hint of toasted oak. A prolonged finish. Well balanced. A nice wine. 14.5% alcohol. 2,2,4.0,9.7 =17.7 (Tasted July 31-August 2).

Mike

Hi Mike

TF Shiraz I find to be very approachable when young. I've tried just-released TF Shiraz in 750ml btls from 99-02. The first and last of those vintages are those that have most impressed; notwithstanding the very, very good 01 that I think is line-ball with the 99, both excellent expressions of the marque. The only btl of 00 tasted so far was disappointing by comparison. But the 02 is the best yet - 2009 should see it really starting to show at it's best.

Cheers

daz

[Guest]

We had the wine here in San Diego last week. (Only the 375ml bottles have arrived no 750s yet) We opened it and did a rough decant five hours before drinking. Very tight and tannic when first opened. Five hours later big rich wine with lots of depth and spice. Great balance and complexity (and avoiding those over the top over-ripe flavors Parker and his sycophants seem to adore) Fruit there but still closed down. Needs time.

Bob: We have very similar experiences with the 375ml. Did you get yours from Vintage Wines?:- we may be drinking from the same trough! I havenÂ’t asked how much they have but the doz or so I saw last week seem to have been there a while. Probably not open enough for most. Tried a second 375 this weekend with very similar notes to those above.

Mike

[KMP]

That's me above. (automatic login would be nice!)

daz wrote:
Hi Mike

TF Shiraz I find to be very approachable when young. I've tried just-released TF Shiraz in 750ml btls from 99-02. The first and last of those vintages are those that have most impressed; notwithstanding the very, very good 01 that I think is line-ball with the 99, both excellent expressions of the marque. The only btl of 00 tasted so far was disappointing by comparison. But the 02 is the best yet - 2009 should see it really starting to show at it's best.

Cheers

daz

daz: Good to hear. I think Bob and I might be drinking from the same source of 375ml bottles and so the lack of nose (aroma) may be a feature of the smaller bottle or its travel shock. But the wine definitely has great structure on the palate. Along with this second 375ml bottle I also had open Rosemount's Hill of Gold Shiraz (2002). I know its not a fair comparison, afterall the Hill of Gold is a wine that my wife has described as "vacant". However the point is that the Rosemount is clearly more open but once you get to compare the wines in your mouth - well there is no comparison. One wine smelling of predominant pepper with underlying blackberry and dusty oak. Thin in the mouth with firm tannins but with a hollow midpalate and finishing with clean acid. Little to no length to the finish. The other initially gives you very little until its in the mouth and then the extra heat lifts some aromas through the retonasal passage, but the real clue is how mouthfilling the wine is. The tannins are big and astringent but not drying and nicely cleared by the acid at the finish; very well balanced wine. The flavors that are there linger. However the real education between the two wines is in the mouthfeel.


As an aside:
A lot of folks compare the best wines against each other and thatÂ’s certainly one way to learn the nuances of fine wine tasting. But for the novices out there one of the best things you can do is take a popular quaffer and put it up against a quality wine, even one that is still a bit young. When you compare them you are not looking for drinkability but for complexity, for the way the wine feels in your mouth, and the way the taste of the wine stays with you after you spit or swallow.

Mike